"After reviewing the Marqués de Cáceres White Rioja back in the heat of the summer (7/19/05), I was eager to try the Marqués’s red counterpart, especially now that the chill outside necessitates frequent openings of rousing reds. With the unexpected complexity and depth of the White Rioja inflating my expectations, I was disappointed by the flatness of this wine. While it has pleasing aromas of red plum, red cherry, and a scrap of leather, the medium body and brisk acidity in the finish covers over any fruit that sits below the surface. Since this wine has been aged in oak for 16 (!) months, it is indubitably a crowd-pleaser, but not particularly memorable. I would like some tierra and more oomph overall in this wine. But not bad when you want an easy-to-drink red proffering the unique Spanish flair of the Tempranillo grape, and it did succeed in rousing me. Although next time I’d choose a similarly-priced Syrah"